Building a Classroom Community during the Holidays!

Hey Y'all! It's Erin from The Elementary Darling. The holidays are upon us. I am so excited to spend some family time over Thanksgiving! During my Thanksgiving break, I always plan my December lessons and make a wishlist of items that I will need to complete crafts, snacks, or activities with my students.I send home my wishlist before December. Some may say that I over plan, but the holidays are crazy enough as it is. We MAP test and benchmark test in December. Add that to the crafts (that you strategically matched to your standards) and the excitement and it gets a little crazy in the classroom. So today, I am going to share my favorite idea to build your classroom community during the holidays!

With all of the business, my students started getting stress some of my friends needed a little reminder to be nice and thankful. I wanted to spread joy and love throughout my classroom while building our classroom community, because let's be honest, we work on this ALL.YEAR.LONG.

So I decided we would build our classroom community by writing nice things about our friends on our paper chain. TWO in ONE deal my friends! You get classroom decor AND kindness from students in one fell swoop.

We filled our room with these strips. Each day, the students would receive two pieces of paper. They were encouraged to write to different people each day, We filled them out in our "spare time" and I asked them to watch their friends to see all of the wonderful things that each of them were doing during the day. I read them and the kids loved hearing all of the fabulous things people were saying about them. I filled them out as well so that all of the students would have great things said about them.

Each afternoon, I would add the strips and the students would watch our chain grow and decorate our classroom. They loved it, and so did I. It really brought out all of those good Holiday Feelings. The best part is, you can do this for very little cost! You can use cut strips of construction paper. If you don't want to do that, you can get the ones that I used from Oriental Trading. They have some really cute ones here or the plain red and green ones here.

How do you build your classroom community during the holidays? Leave us a comment and let us know the wonderful things that you do in the classroom! Happy Holidays, Friends!

-Erin from The Elementary Darling

9 Things You Need from the Dollar Spot This Winter

You may think it's a little too early to be talking Christmas, but in my humble opinion, it's totally not too soon! In fact, Target (our favorite store) dropped their holiday merchandise THIS WEEK, so you have to stock up before the Dollar Spot is completely picked over!

Here are 9 things you could grab from the Dollar Spot before you miss your chance! 

First and foremost, you NEED these blank books in your life! My students L-O-V-E them, and so do I. Both of the book sets pictured below are too cute, but I chose to stock up on sets with more neutral covers since I can't do Christmas in my classroom. $3 for 6 blank books is a steal, in my opinion.

Want to help your students write neatly in their blank books? Grab my templates, which are FREE in my store!

I don't know about you, but I use mini erasers for ALL KINDS OF FUN THINGS in math! They are the perfect manipulatives to get your students excited about learning and practicing math. I most recently used fun erasers as a nonstandard unit of measurement. The opportunities are really endless. Snowmen, Christmas trees, penguins, oh my!

The next items can also be used in so many ways in your classroom. I use dominoes in math for fact families, addition, subtraction, and more. I thought the tumbling tower pieces might be good for STEM. If nothing else, they make easy, fun, and cheap games for indoor recess!

Clothespins can be found everywhere in my classroom. Most of my clothespins are boring, but the ones currently for sale in the Dollar Spot are just the opposite!

I found chalkboard clothespins first - how clever! You could use them to label stack of papers... "to grade," "to copy," or even "throw away after the kids go home." (Let's be real.)

Target had some pretty cute mini clothespins in the Dollar Spot too, which I've seen many teachers use for centers activities.

STAMPS! and INK! Just take my paycheck, Target! I bought myself some ink because, well, it was only a dollar, and I'm always needing an ink pad for some reason, so why not? The stamps were super cute, too! On second thought, maybe I should go back and get some...

I definitely did not buy any loud, jingly musical instruments for my classroom, but maybe you want to for yours! For only a dollar, a tambourine, triangle, or jingle stick would make a great gift for your students. If you put on annual performances, STOCK UP!

Because Target always seems to have us teachers in mind, you can find "shatter-resistant" clear ornaments in the Dollar Spot right now. Just look on Pinterest for lots of super cute ideas for ornaments that students can make as gifts for their families.

Do any of you have VIP caddies or VIP supplies as a behavior incentive? The Dollar Spot has plenty of festive pens and pencils to stock up on. I personally was obsessed with my own 6-color pen when I was a kid!

Primary teachers, these last items are for you! These magnetic letters, shapes, and numbers are super cute and would look great on your whiteboard! I came close to buying some for myself although I definitely don't need them.

What do you think? Are you running to Target now, or what?!

Have you seen anything else in the Dollar Spot lately that is perfect for the classroom?

Let me know in a comment below.

Happy holidays, and happy shopping! 

- Kristin from School and the City 

1st Day of Christmas-One Seasonal Holiday Craft

The last day before holiday break CAN BE chaos, so let me help you bring a bit of good drama and fun into the holiday party.  Do you have plans for a holiday party in your classroom?  Do you freak out every year because you have to figure out what to do during that hour of "fun"?  Maybe you are the teacher and room parent rolled into one.  Are you are the parent to a fabulous kiddo and search for more fun during the holiday? Anyone of any age can create memories and traditions with today's freebie on the Primary Peach's Twelve Freebie Themed Days.

On the first day of Christmas, the Primary Peach gave to me,

 

Hey y'all, this is Valerie from Georgia Grown Kiddos.  Today I have my MOST FAVORITE holiday craft for the kiddos to enjoy creating.  

 

My favorite seasonal activity is Sleepy Potion.  Every teacher needs that special something to give their students during the holiday season. This helpful and inexpensive activity will keep you in the children’s hearts for years to come! 

This activity can be completed in a few minutes at the holiday party, is a unique gift you can give to the kiddos, and with enough drama mixed into the potion, it will help the children fall asleep on the night before Christmas! Simply follow the recipe and add LOTS of drama! Adults know it as hot chocolate, but the kids will revel in the excitement of the special magic that can only be seen by those who still believe!

 

I hope you have a restful and relaxing holiday.  Unplug and be in the moment.  Merry Christmas and we at the Primary Peach wish you happy new year!

For more ideas from the Primary Peach, be sure to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest.

 

Blessings y'all,

Valerie

4th Day of Winter: 4 Science and Social Studies Activities

Ready for some more great ideas?

The Primary Peach gave to meeeeee...

It's Jivey and Valerie, from Georgia Grown Kiddos, here to bring you some science and social studies FUN! First up, Jivey is going to share some things you can do in the upper grades.

SCIENCE: If you teach the weather cycle, this freebie will be great for you! Already taught it? No worries! It will be a great review, and you'll get in some awesome test prep, too. Your kids will be amazed at how snowflakes form and how different each one is, as well as how "Snowflake Bentley" was able to capture these unique crystals on film! Although it's geared for 4th-8th, 3rd-grade teachers, you could do this with some scaffolding and assistance in small groups very easily! You can read more about using this set of paired texts in this post!

SOCIAL STUDIES: Do you love teaching about the American Revolution as much as I do? Then you will LOVE this book! When Washington Crossed the Delaware is a very different kind of Christmas story, as Washington and his men crossed the icy Delaware River to surprise the Hessians:

It has beautiful pictures, as well as real quotes from some of the famous men of the time. You can also provide a little comic relief with this silly Sesame Street skit:

YES EVEN THE BIG KIDS LOVE SESAME STREET! My kids died laughing every year when I showed this!

Now, Valerie is going to share some science and social studies excitement for the young ones!

Hi y'all!  Thanks Jivey for the intro and sharing the day with me!  I have a super exciting activity for anyone, but especially the young ones!  I warn you; I love to make a mess and let the children play with it and get everything they can from the activity.  I saw this yesterday, and it pretty much sums up my approach to the day.

Now, on to the fun!

SCIENCE: I am inspired by Growing A Jeweled Rose to make this "learning experience".  It is Santa Toothpaste. Children can see and feel what happens when 2 or more solutions are combined.

To make Santa toothpaste you will need the following items.  Make sure you read through to the *tips list.

1 cup 6% or higher Hydrogen Peroxide*
1 squeeze dish soap*
desired amount green or red food coloring
desired amount peppermint extract
desired amount glitter, sparkles, fun add-ins
3 Tablespoons yeast*
6 Tablespoons warm water
empty water or similar bottle

*Tips:

• Dish soap- use a light colored liquid if possible, so the food coloring shows more true color.
• 6% Hydrogen peroxide is sold in beauty supply stores and pharmacy stores
• Using regular hydrogen peroxide will work, but it will not be as dramatic of a reaction.  (that is what I used)
• Use fresh yeast packs.  It will take 3 small packs to make 3 tablespoons
• Complete the activity somewhere you can spray off (we did ours on the driveway) or can get messy.

Directions:
Combine the following in the water bottle, careful not to shake the bottle,

• 6% or higher Hydrogen Peroxide*
• dish soap*
• green or red food coloring
• peppermint extract
• glitter, sparkles, fun add-ins

Once you have combined the solution, gently swirl the ingredients together.  

In a separate container, add the warm water and yeast together and mix until there are no lumps in the solution.

Add the yeast solution quickly to the bottle of the first solution.  

The reaction is quick so be ready!

SOCIAL STUDIES: Santa needs help!!  You need social studies skill review.  Here is a solution for you both!  Santa is lost and will need the children's help to travel around the world.  This social studies freebie uses the continents and oceans as a way to help Santa find his way around the world. Click on the image below to link to the download.

Make sure to come back tomorrow for three MORE ideas- this time for seasonal writing!

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For even more ideas from The Primary Peach, be sure to follow us on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook to catch all the latest news and updates!

6th Day of Winter: 6 Math Centers {FREEBIES}

We are halfway through our Twelve Days of Winter blog series.  It seems like this December is FLYING!!  Today's theme is...

Here at the Primary Peach we have SIX  FREE math centers for you!! Are you ready? Enjoy!!

The Primary Peach gave me.....

Have you gotten all the freebies and goodies?  If not, click below to get them all!

Day 12: Seasonal Read Alouds

11th Day of Winter: 11 Math Activities

10th Day of Winter: 10 Reading Activities

9th Day of Winter: 9 Grammar Activities 

8th Day of Winter: 8 Homework Activities

7th Day of Winter: 7 Seasonal Tech Ideas

Make sure to come back tomorrow for FIVE more freebies!

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12th Day of Winter: 12 Holiday Books

December is HERE!!! My tree is up and decorated, the lights and stockings are hung, and according to Buddy the Elf, I've been spreading Christmas cheer for a good solid two weeks already! :)

My friends and I here at The Primary Peach are so excited to bring you "The 12 Days of Winter" - and whole bunch of ideas, freebies, and holiday fun! We will offer 12 days of resources - the same number resources for the day. For example for the 5th day we will offer 5 free resources! 

The Primary Peach gave to meeeeeee......

Let me be real...I probably have close to 45 Christmas-related books, 20 or so "Holidays Around the World Books," and 25 or so Winter books that I've collected over the years. There's NO WAY, I could only share 12!!! Instead, I've divided the post into Christmas books, Holidays Around the World books, and Winter books. 

I've also created a PDF with the books listed...print, and then check off the ones you already have, or highlight ones you want to get! Easy peasy! Just click on the lists to download :)

These lists are by no means comprehensive, however, I hope they help you grow your read aloud collection, and give you some read aloud inspiration!

Be sure to check back tomorrow when The Primary Peach gives...11 Seasonal Math Activities!!!

For even more ideas from The Primary Peach, be sure to follow us on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook to catch all the latest news and updates!

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